Dubbed "Burke Pulser" attachments after their creator Army Armament Research electronics engineer James E. Burke, these devices utilize a piezoelectric generator and two protruding antennas to generate powerful bursts of electrical. The entire unit fits onto the end of the Army's M4 carbine just as a standard-issue flash suppressor does.

And while the truck-mounted HEL-MD lasers are being built to fry incoming aerial threats like drones and missiles, the Pulser is meant to instead obliterate the electrical circuitry of roadside bombs and IEDs. The system is still in its early development but, should the program reach full production, Burke estimates that each device could be built for under $1000. That's a heck of a lot cheaper (in both money and manpower) than sending in an EOD (bomb disposal) squad.

So it's like a mini-directed-EMP device or just some kind of poor mans reusable tazer? I'm confused.

"On today's battlefield, this slower [two optic] approach, which is often further hampered by heavy smoke or bad weather, compromises soldiers' safety and can reduce mission effectiveness," a BAE release reads. "By integrating night vision and thermal targeting capabilities into one sight displayed on the soldiers' goggles, BAE Systems' new solution allows troops to more easily acquire targets and engage faster."

While the optic itself is mounted on the soldier's rifle, what it sees is actually beamed via a Bluetooth connection to a head-mounted display. This allows the warfighter to quickly toggle between the two modes at the push of a button.

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I was hoping this would be some cool two-in-one view that would intelligently layer both views on top of each other. Still cool but not as cool as I thought based on the headline.

Sikorsky has another evolution of their X2 Platform. It has both contra-rotating rotors and a pusher propellar. I guess between this and the planned SB-1 Defiant we'll start seeing more testing of these type of aircraft.

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Kind of a thought train that came out of gaming lately but what is considered properly "near future" on the battlefield now? A lot of games have gone beyond and are now what I consider distant future (looking at you CoD).

Havana (CNN)A higher number of US and Canadian diplomats and their families are believed to have been attacked by a mystery sonic weapon in Havana than was initially reported, CNN has learned from two senior US government officials.

More than 10 US diplomats and family members received treatment after the months of harassing attacks, which began in mid-November 2016 and stopped this spring, said the US officials, who did not want to be identified because of the sensitive nature of the attacks and ongoing investigation.

Two US diplomats who were treated in the United States suffered long-term injuries including hearing loss as a result of the attacks and were unable to return to Cuba, three US government sources told CNN. Additional diplomats opted to leave their assignments in Cuba early, as a result of the harassment, the two US government officials told CNN.
....

In some of the attacks a sophisticated sonic weapon that operated outside the range of audible sound was deployed either inside or outside the residences of US diplomats living in Havana, according to three US officials.

14. ABSTRACT
The tasking for this study was to evaluate the potential for adversaries to exploit advances in Human Performance Modification, and thus create a threat to national security. In making this assessment, we were asked to evaluate long-term scenarios. We have thus considered the present state of the art in pharmaceutical intervention in cognition and in brain-computer interfaces, and considered how possible future developments might proceed and be used by adversaries.

.....

The fields of neuroscience, psycho-pharmacology, and cognition are in rapid flux because new scientific tools have provided the capability to develop fundamental understanding of linkages among brain activity, electrical and chemical stimulation, and human behavior. Applications to human performance modification are being driven primarily by medical needs, e.g., “cognitive repair,” and there are significant new technological developments in this area. As a result, there is popular excitement about, and thus commercial markets for possible applications in “cognitive enhancement.” This area is certain to be investigated extensively over the next decade. Awareness of developments in cognitive performance enhancement, including cultural differences in adoption, will be important because these may affect the behavior and effectiveness of opposing military forces in both symmetric and asymmetric warfare. The findings and recommendations of our study fall under three categories, evaluation of military effectiveness, brain plasticity, and brain-computer interface as outlined below.

Sounds sort of cryptic but it's really not. The first 10 pages do a pretty good job explaining what it is about. It's 90 pages long. Nothing too surprising if someone has been following fitness, drugs, nootropics, etc. but it's kind of interesting to see big organizations presenting documents to the government about the topic(s).

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Well this is an interesting design for multiple reasons. The fixed cover allows for better optics mounting and the fixed/low barrel allows for good accuracy. It's being made by a czech company so I hope it does well and inspires other cool new designs.